The final disc of Sakura Wars is a little more exciting than the first one, although I am still thoroughly confused about the characters. There is a stand-alone episode and a two-parter to end the OVA.

The single episode revolves around Orihime, whose father has been picked to do the cover artwork for the upcoming production of the Red Lad book. Her father asks her to wear the dress as he paints it, but some thugs decide to destroy the house they are in because the new owner wants everyone out. In the end a fight ensues.

The last two episodes revolve around Sakura herself. She and Yoneda head off to the countryside and some rumors start up about Sakura and a wedding. The rest of the group figures Sakura has gone to get married and that they will eventually get married themselves. They start to realize that the group's time together may not be as forever as they thought. It is one of those coming-of-ages stories.

Of course the reliance on rumors is the wrong way to tread, as Sakura is really going to see a relative get married. Yoneda is along to look after Sakura as her father had asked him to do. As they go along on the train it becomes apparent that a bond is growing between them, although Yoneda brushes it off by saying he has the bond with all of the girls in the troupe.

What works in these episodes is that I am actually presented with some history and can start to understand Sakura's place in the world and the people around her. I guess there is another TV series coming out and maybe this OVA was just a primer for what is coming. The visuals were really good on this disc as well.

The DVD

Video: The video is quite good through the full-frame presentation here. I did not notice any defects and this has to be a relatively new program.

Sound: Presented in Dolby Digital 2.0 and in English and Dolby Digital 5.1 Japanese. For one of the few times ever I listened to the Japanese mix because of its 5.1 goodness. The sound was quite good and the rear speakers were used quite a bit for ambience and things like that.

Menus: Laid out like the front and back cover with music in the background.

Extras:

Clean Opening: The opening with no text and a different logo.

Character Bios: Bios on the characters, but does not give enough information for those that do not know much about the series.

Production Sketches w/commentary: Runs about 11 minutes with some commentary here and there.

Original Japanese DVD covers and inserts: It is neat to see these on anime stuff always. The Japanese usually have better DVD artwork than we do over here on anime titles.Video Promo: An 8-minute video promo

Final Thoughts: This release of Sakura Wars is easy to recommend because of the last 2 episodes. They were easily the best episodes in this OVA series. I highly recommend this disc for these two episodes. They are the best this OVA had to offer.